Harry Potter and the Daywalker
by ilovetoph4eva
Summary: When Harry Potter goes to Hogwarts for the first time, he is unprepared for what awaits him. Making friends, sparking rivalries, strange teachers are all a part of what he experiences. But the strangest thing of all, is what's killing the Unicorns in the Forbidden Forest. Very AU. This story is has no lemons, but a fair deal of violence. You were warned.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing. Please don't sue. Not that this disclaimer would stop you.

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><p><span><strong>Prologue<strong>

She carved into his skin with practiced ease. A few years ago she might have balked at the idea of using human blood for any magical purpose, but knowing why it was being used, her hands never shook once.

Across from her the man, her partner for lack of a better term, knelt by the altar. His wand was lit blue as he used it to carve glyphs into the stone of the altar, adding layers above that which was already there. He worked quickly, moving with a speed and precision that may have made some think that he knew what he was doing, but she knew him well enough to know that he didn't understand a word of what he was writing. To him it was just a mixture of funny signs and squiggles. Apparently being 'highborn' did not correlate with understanding advanced magical theory.

"I'm done." She said stepping back from the body.

Her partner didn't look up from his work but responded quietly, "Take a break, you'll need your strength."

She stifled the urge to scold him for daring to tell her what to do. He was right this time. Unfortunately their present location didn't offer much in terms of a relaxing atmosphere. She might have sought out comfort in the stars, as she often had in the past, but only blackness greeted her when she cast her eyes skywards. The roof of the cave was so high that what little light her spell had produced was lost before it even got close to touching it. In another place, another time, the water could have stilled her nerves and slowed her heart, bought her the illusion of peace and tranquility for a time. But here, the stillness of it was unnerving, its darkness depressing, and its dwellers terrifying. She truly regretted asking what lay beneath the surface.

So, in her own typical fashion, she settled for watching and inspecting her partner work, and reciting the words of the ritual she was about to perform.

**DRACO**

As he began copying the final sequence of wards and runes, Draco chanced a glance at her. Her lingering presence was a clear response to his earlier suggestion that she rest. And now she seemed even more upset than she had before when they rowed across the lake to reach this accursed island.

It annoyed him more than he cared to admit. Who was she to stand there, glaring disapprovingly at him as if he were a muggle child playing in the dirt? And earlier, she'd had the gall to comment on his sour mood. As if walking to your impending murder was something to look forward to!

Sure he'd been overjoyed when he first learnt of his prophecy all those months ago. It had been a sign to him. A sign that fate and destiny themselves were sure of his importance in the grand scheme. And though he wasn't wrong about that, it certainly was not how he had envisioned his great contribution to the tomes of history.

Draco Malfoy, scion of a Noble House that championed the virtues of Blood Supremacy. Led like a lamb to the slaughter into a dark cave, to die, at the hands of a mudblood. He couldn't imagine anything worse really, but at least he still had his wit.

"Really, Granger" he said, "I know I'm handsome but must you stare like some kind of dumb animal? Its unbecoming of my murderer."

She blinked slowly a couple of times before scowling. "First of all, it's not murder. You volunteered. And secondly, I wasn't looking at _you,_ I was observing your poor attempt at runescaping to make sure you don't muck it up."

He scoffed, "And I suppose you can do better?"

"Of course! I spent yea-"

"Then I wonder why he chose _me, _to do this instead of you?"

He saw her expression almost turn apoplectic and changed tact.

"Besides, I really don't think it matters a great deal who does what at this point. It's not going to work."

He was thankful that she took the bait. He couldn't endure another lecture. Not now.

"That's ridiculous. Professor Riddle is the greatest wizard to have ever lived. A master of the runic practices and the only thing that stands between us and oblivion!"

"Yeah. But he couldn't stop Madara could he." He muttered.

That stopped her in her tracks.

"I'm done" he said.

Silence suddenly stretched between them. It seemed neither quite knew how to go about their next task. They weren't friends. He neither liked nor respected her. He would have been happy having almost anyone else by his side at that moment. As it was, he felt more alone than he had at any point in his life.

Draco kept his gaze fixed on the altar, scrutinizing the man to whom he had sworn the oath which was to end with his death. Granger had marked out his spot next to the altar, positioned close enough that his blood, oh so pure, would splash onto the body.

"Well?" she asked, looking at everything but him. The mudblood _did _have a conscious after all.

He shot her a withering glare, "Forgive me for not being in a rush to die."

She regarded him with a narrowed brow. "You swore an oath. Don't forget that. There's more riding on this than just your life."

"Considering just how enthusiastic you seem to be about this manslaughter business, it's a shame that it can't be you about to have your soul torn out of your body and your blood spilt like some cow."

Abruptly, an explosion sounded in the distance and the world around them seemed to shudder in anticipation. Granger's face blanched as she spun to look out into the darkness, where the shore must have been.

"That's impossible." She whispered, "They shouldn't know where we are. How did they find us?"

She turned to him, and quicker than he would have thought her wand was out and his consciousness was fading.

**Hermione**

Hermione quickly levitated his body into position. As loathe as she was to do this to him whilst he was unconscious he'd given her no choice. There was no time to waste.

With a deep breath, she pointed her wand at Malfoy's throat and closed her eyes. She didn't need to watch it.

"Diffindo."

She opened her eyes for just a second, and shut them immediately after as she glimpsed his body bathed in blood. She now wished that she had used a spell that was a tad more, delicate.

The cave shook again, closer, and this time a few stalagmites descended from the unseen roof, plunging into the dead surface of the lake and sending ripples to lap at the shore of the island like a hound at the heels of its prey.

She began enchanting the words she had been taught, letting her magic reach out and grasp what lingered of Draco's magic, and combine it with the body on the altar. Surprisingly, it wasn't a very long incantation and she was soon finished, sealing the spell with a swish and a flick of her wand.

As she opened her eyes again and stepped away from the alter she observed the altar and felt the first inklings of doubt creep into her mind. She had the utmost confidence in Riddle's abilities and estimations, but was it really so simple? A few uttered words and a slit throat was all it took to traverse the fabrics of time?

She had hoped that sending him back in time would mean that the world she knew would cease to exist. But here she was, the lone survivor in a sacrificial ritual. Either it hadn't worked and she had just murdered someone for nothing, or the multiverse theory was correct and she was doomed to die here regardless of his actions in the past. What a way to discover that nugget of information.

Another sound rang out from the entrance. A deep explosion, like the falling of a door, it wouldn't be long now. They were through.

Whether or not the ritual worked, her part was done. Now, she could only try to take as many of them down with her as possible.

She conjured a levitating ball of light and set it high above the island, illuminating much of the water around her, but still not reaching the entrance. For a moment, she didn't really know how long, she stood and waited, wand at the ready. And just as she was beginning to think that maybe they had failed to break through the last gate, that maybe she had misheard or miscounted, she heard them.

The quiet echoes of feet upon water reached across the surface of the lake. So quiet that they would have been silent were it not for their location. Within moments she saw them emerge from the darkness at the edge of her field of vision. Masked, armed, and fast.

The great enemy wouldn't be far behind. So she waited and watched, watched as pale hands rose out of the depths and dragged many of the incoming men down.

'_Inferi_,' she thought, '_Coming to the aid of a muggleborn, how Malfoy must be rolling in his…_'

After the initial surprise, the men began to evade them with ease.

_'So much for that.'_

She flicked her wand and summoned a hale that screeched through the cave, creating waves that revealed the sullen creatures that dwelled beneath the water. It also had the added benefit of disturbing the invaders, allowing for more inferi to pounce. As more and more of the soldiers arrived, she began firing off curses into their ranks. Killing curses, cutting curses, bombardments. Anything she could muster or imagine. Conjured beasts ran amok, tearing into her adversaries, but too soon they were taken down.

Then, _he _arrived. At first, a warrior clad in blood red armor, wielding a sword that visibly shuddered with unkempt power, but with his every step, he changed. Magic poured from his flesh. So dense that it took physical form, enshrouding him until he could no longer be seen. It molded and grew, grew until he was a demon, a wraith, tall enough that his face was hidden in the darkness high above the reach of her light. A swing of his arm and the surface of the lake was set ablaze with black flames that she knew would burn forever. The screams of the immolated Inferi shook her out of her stupor.

She cast the killing curse at the demon, and it thundered against the fiend's chest, but it did not falter. Closer and closer it came. Its long strides devouring the distance between them as it bore down on her.

Every spell she knew, she cast. It had no effect. Not for the first time in her life, but most certainly the last, Hermione cursed herself for never learning and mastering combat magic. Riddle had always said it was her greatest failing. He was never wrong.

Then, he was upon her. Her wand shriveled in her hand, blowing away into dust as she faced the demon, alone, and unarmed. It bent the knee before her, bringing its head from the dark depths of the ceiling until it hovered right above her. Her light spell had died out by then, so she was left standing in the glow of the demon's shroud.

She couldn't see the man inside the magical shroud, but she could feel his stare piercing her. It filled her with the kind of physical numbness one could only experience when truly out of their depth. And since he didn't kill her immediately, it was of no surprise when he spoke.

"Where?" he said in a deep broken voice, "Where, is, he?"

It was only then that she glanced back and realized that his body was gone from the altar. For a moment that lifted her spirits, but then she turned back to face it. Hermione stood, as tall as she dared, and forced herself to look into its eyes.

"Somewhere you'll never find him."

It stared at her for a while longer. As if it thought that it could wait her out. But she stood and glared, never giving an inch.

"So be it."

Its magic reached out and the color drained from the world, shattering open the gates to her mind, leaving nothing unscathed.

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><p><strong>AN: <strong>This prologue is not in line with much of the beginning of the story. It alludes to things farther down the line, but I felt it needed to be here. Thanks for reading, please review.


	2. Chapter 2

**Harry Potter and the Daywalker**

**Chapter 1**

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><p><span><strong>JAMES<strong>

James looked at the clock on the wall, and for the third time in the past ten minutes he cursed getting such a terrible shift on today of all days.

"Would you stop checking the bloody clock Prongs? It's putting me off." Sirius growled distractedly.

He was sat back in his chair, a magazine spread open in his hands, and the bastard didn't even have the decency to appear slightly tired. They'd been on the clock for nearly 12 hours now and he might as well have just walked out his apartment.

"Why the hell aren't you as tired as I am? And aren't you worried about not getting to see Harry off?"

Sirius gave him a pointed look over the top of his magazine and yawned dramatically.

"There. You happy now?" he said, "And just so you know, I am equally _piqued _to see off your little pronglet, but unlike you I have something of a reputation to uphold. The masses shouldn't see me anxious for _anything. _It would be unbecoming for a bachelor of my stature."

James snorted and turned his attention back to the clock. Ten more minutes. All he had to do was wait for ten more minutes and he could leave and see Harry off to his first year at Hogwarts. It was all so exciting, and a part of him couldn't believe that it had come about so fast. It felt like only a few weeks ago when they'd bought his first toy, or taken him to first Quidditch match. And now, it was time for him to head off to Hogwarts, where he'd probably meet his best friend, his future wife.

Just as James was beginning to imagine Harry bringing home a stunning witch, the door to their office opened, and in flew a paper bird. It landed softly on James' desk and sat patiently, waiting for him to open it.

The bloody thing seemed to stare at him. Mock him almost. He was _so close_, why couldn't it have come just ten minutes later.

For a moment he considered simply waiting it out. It was only nine minutes and 26 seconds after all. Who would know? But even he had to admit, that was quite irresponsible, and he wasn't ready to give up his Auror badge after all the work he'd gone through to get it. With a glance at a suitably sympathetic Sirius, he picked up the bird and read the message.

_This message is for the Aurors on duty. Enquiries filed by Aurors Scrimgeour and Robards regarding case 148 have been processed, and there has been a sighting of the illegal dark creature in Inner London. You are to search the area and attempt to identify the creature. You are not to engage it unless otherwise threatened. Report your findings to Head Auror Longbottom._

James dropped his head on the desk. Of all things to come at the end of the shift, a bloody recce at 10:30 in the morning. And how vague could they get? Inner London was massive!

"So, what we looking at?" asked Sirius.

James wandlessly flicked the paper at his partner and continued to curse his luck as Sirius read the message aloud.

When Sirius finished reading it, he folded it back into a bird, using his hands no less, and set it down on the table before getting up and walking towards the door.

"Come on James. _We _are leaving."

James sighed. "Yeah, we might as well get started. May be we get lucky and find this thing in time to meet Harry at Kings Cross."

"I don't think you're quite getting me mate, they're barmy if they think I'll let you do this today. We're leaving. In about five minutes, Moody'll clock in. You know that crazy bastard will want to do it on his own anyways, so we might as well clock out early, and let him do it. Besides, it'll take us well close to five minutes to even get out the building."

James hesitated for a moment, but one glance at Sirius's raised eyebrow and he was sold.

"Alright then, let's get out of here."

Sirius grinned and led the way. Every step they took through the DMLE was a test of James' acting abilities. The DMLE offices weren't bustling as such-what with it being early morning-but they were still somewhat busy. Officers writing and filing paperwork at their open desks and messenger birds whizzing in and out of the department, they all moved about in a dull monotony that was broken by his and Sirius' exit.

Heads turned to look at them, even if only momentarily, and James felt like they all knew exactly what they were doing. Together, he and Sirius walked through the department at what felt like a healthy and completely unsuspicious pace. They passed by the Head Auror office with little trouble since Alice was taking the morning off to say goodbye to Neville. The Head of the DMLE, Amelia Bones, was a slight problem since she _was_ sitting in her office and had most definitely given them an apprehensive glare. But ever since their transition to the Auror department she was no longer in charge of them, so they'd simply given her a big smile and walked on.

They got past the elevator, and the primary reception area and were set to go through one of the floos when the flames blazed into life and out stepped none other than Alistair Moody, mad-eye and all. James sometimes did wonder why he was friends with Sirius, all he ever did was get them into tough situations.

"Where do you think you're going laddy?" growled Moody,

Sirius responded without pause, "Thought we ought to come and meet you here for the shift change."

"Yes, exactly that." James added.

Moody stared at them. James smiled as cheerily as he could. If there was one person who could sniff out a lie it was Moody. Damn Auror was so suspicious he probably thought they were planning to kill the Minister or something equally nefarious.

"You're lying."

This really wasn't going well.

"Alright, how about you hear us out?"

"Start talkin' Black. You better have a damn good reason to lie to me face boy. I've killed people for less."

"No you haven't!" James scoffed.

"Shut up prongs! Well you see, Harry's going off to-"

"Who the hell's Harry?" Moody barked.

"Oh right, he's my son." James supplied.

"Anyways, he's going off to Hogwarts today and we just got an assignment. If we take it, we'll be out of office and James will miss the little pup's leaving."

"What's the assignment?"

"They've tracked the dark creature from case 148 to somewhere in Inner London and they want us to search the area."

Moody hadn't moved an inch during their explanation. He'd just stared with the same grim expression on his scarred face. It was off putting to say the least, but at least he was considering their proposition.

"Alright." He said eventually.

James could have whooped he was so elated.

"Thank you, thank you so much. We owe you one." He resisted the urge to hug the surly looking man lest he change his mind. Sirius, on the other hand, did no such thing.

"Moody you gruff old teddy bear." He said, enthusiastically slapping the auror on the arm. "I knew you had a soft side."

"Not you Black."

"What?"

"Not you. Potter can go. You're with me. We've got a city to search."

James looked at Sirius, not sure what to feel. Sirius was Harry's godfather and Harry would definitely want him there. He opened his mouth to try and reach a compromise with Moody but Sirius cut him off.

"Fine. If that's what it takes, I'll stay."

"Sirius-"

"Prongs, it's a big day and you're late. Get going, I can take care of this. And besides, there's always next year."

James smiled and remembered why Sirius was his best friend. He quickly said goodbye and stepped into the floo.

Sirius' smile fell off his face as his friend flooed away. It was just his luck to be stuck with Moody. The old auror was infamous for overworking himself, and anyone under his command. And currently, that was Sirius.

Sirius turned to him and smiled as genially as he could.

"So, how about we look for this dark creature for a couple of hours then head back? It's probably a false alarm anyways."

Moody stared at him for a moment then barked out in laughter and began to walk off.

"We search till we find what we're searchin' for boy!"

Sirius' groaned as he grudgingly followed the crazy old bastard to the apparition point. This was not turning out to be too good a day.

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><p><span><strong>HARRY<strong>

1st September 1991 – Kings Cross Station

Harry walked onto Platform 9¾ at 10:30 on the 1st of September. He would normally have preferred to arrive earlier, but his dad had been late to get home from The Ministy and so Harry and his mum had waited.

Flanked by his parents, he walked through the crowd of adults and over-excited children. Once or twice they were forced to stop. His dad was quite popular, and several wizards stopped him for a word. Harry didn't like how they would look at him, their eyes drawn to the scar on his forehead. His mum had done her best to disguise it somewhat with his hair, but when his dad had arrived, he ruffled his hair and undid most of that.

Harry and his mum left his dad behind and pushed through to put Harry's stuff on-board the train.

They got his trunk onboard with little fuss when his dad finally caught up with them.

"Sorry about all that Harry. You know how it is."

He knew all too well.

"Sure dad. I'm just happy you're here."

"Good. Good. Don't you worry about anything, alright? You'll do just fine. Probably make all your first few friends on the train. And Minnie will absolutely love having you, you'll make a great Gryffindor- "

"_But_", mom interjected shooting his dad a look, "We'll be proud of you no matter what house you are in. After all, you know great men and women from every house."

Dad frowned a bit, and Harry worried that he was about to say something and cause an 'incident' in public, but he caught Harry's eye and nodded in agreement.

"And remember Harry," reminded his mum, "be nice and friendly and everything should be fine. I'll keep an eye you."

Despite the blush that was beginning to form on his face Harry quickly pulled his parents in for a hug before boarding.

Inside, the train was still somewhat busy with students laughing and shouting up and down the gangway. Although this smoothed Harry's slight worries about being one of the last to board, it didn't help his nerves being surrounded by so many older students. Still, it was better than getting recognized.

He smoothed his hair down in front of forehead and excused his way through the throng. With every door he passed he glanced through the glass, hoping to see a familiar face. Cedric maybe, or Neville. But every cabin was full of unfamiliar faces, all looking decidedly daunting the moment they saw the small face of a firstie at their door.

Just when he was beginning to think that maybe no one he knew was here yet, he looked through a cabin door and saw Neville. He was sat, already in his robes, petting his pet toad, and looking at least twice as nervous as Harry felt. Harry had never been happier to see him.

"Hey Nev" said Harry as he entered the cabin.

"Harry! Thank merlin you're here. I was beginning to think maybe you'd got lost or something."

Harry laughed and sat opposite him, "Fat chance of that happening. Not today anyways. Have you seen Cedric?"

Neville's face went bright red, "Well… yeah. He was with that Cho. They've got their own cabin somewhere further down."

"Oh. I guess we'll see him later. Anyways, how was your summer?"

Neville launched into a play by play account of his summer in America. He had found the entire trip 'delightful', but was still not entirely happy about having to do everything the muggle way. Apparently the Americans were very paranoid about international wizards coming onto their shores, especially if they didn't have any clearly defined magical purpose for being there. Thanks to that, Neville and his family had spent their entire holiday doing things the muggle way. No magic allowed. In the end though, Neville bared it, largely because he got to spend the summer with both his parents. Considering that he knew what it was like to have one parent in Law Enforcement, Harry was genuinely sympathetic to Neville since he had two in that situation.

Neville had just finished explaining what it was like riding in an airplane and was in the middle of explaining his mistreatment at the metaphorical and literal hands of American immigration when the door opened and in walked a red headed boy who looked tall enough to be a second year.

"Hi… you mind if I sit with you?" he said,

Harry and Neville exchanged a quick glance, "Yeah, sure, that's okay." Harry replied.

Ron grinned and dropped into the seat beside Harry.

"Thanks. I'm Ron, by the way."

"I'm Harry. Harry Potter."

"I'm Nev-"

"Blimey! So you're Harry Potter! Can I see the scar?" he asked, leaning in uncomfortably close,

"Uhh… sure.", Harry was reminded of his mother's words as he lifted his fringe and resisted the urge to push him away.

_Give him a chance, _he thought, _you'd probably react the same if you met someone like Dumbledore, or Lockhart._

Ron stared at it in awe for a few seconds, muttering 'wicked' under his breath, then sat back signifying that he was done gawking.

"I wish I had a scar." He said wistfully

Harry didn't know what to say that, so he opted for deflecting the conversation elsewhere.

"So, are you new to all this?" he asked

"All what?"

"Sorry, I meant magic. The Wizarding world and all that."

Ron scoffed at that, "No way. I'm a pureblood. Got three brothers already at Hogwarts."

A voice interrupted their conversation, seeming to reverberate from the walls of the train itself.

'All aboard! All aboard! The train is about to leave the station.'

Sure enough the train shuddered a few minutes later, and began to slowly chug away from the station. Harry and Neville both hung from the window, waving to Harry's parents. Neville's dad had already left. They also saw a girl with red hair franticly running alongside the train, waving at Ron.

The rest of the ride was pleasant for the most part. A pair of prefects wearing Slytherin badges came by to check on them just a half hour in. They were quite nice, and made sure that there weren't any problems before moving along to the next cabin. They didn't even mention Harry's scar, if they noticed.

Then, the cart lady, as Ron dubbed her, came by offering food. Neville bought a few of his favorite sweets, and Harry, after seeing Ron's envious glances, bought more than he needed and split it with him.

The only other interruption that arose came when two identical red haired bots popped their heads through the door. Clearly related to Ron.

"Hello there!" said one,

"Well if it isn't our very own Ronniekins." Said the other,

"Already made some friends eh?"

Ron started to speak but they spoke over him, "Oh but, how could we be so rude dear brother."

"Oh yes! We didn't introduce ourselves."

"He's Fred." Said the first, nodding his head at his brother.

"And he's George."

"And together, we're Gred and Forge!"

"Now, enough of the chitchat, we're on the hunt."

"Oh we most certainly are brother dearest. What is it exactly we're looking for?"

"Ah yes. We're on the search for an ickle firstie."

"A young damsel who unfortunately-"

"And by sheer chance mind you!"

"-came across one of our more… base endeavors."

"Yes, you see, we were under the impression that a certain group of slimy slytherins were going to be occupying Cabin 5C."

"But alas, they changed their base of nefarious operations-"

"And in walked our most unfortunate firstie."

"She's around about somewhere-"

"Probably smelling like dung."

"And we are positively distraught."

"Yes. That, and Perfect Prefect Percy threatened us with the most heinous of punishments."

They looked at one another and intoned, "Mother."

"So, seen her around?"

Harry was about to point out that they hadn't at all described the girl they were talking about, but they took the momentary silence as a no and moved the conversation on.

"Oh well, that's alright." Said Gred,

"I'm sure she's fine." Replied Forge,

"So, are you firsties prepared for your sorting?" asked Gred,

This time they actually paused long enough for Neville to respond.

"Well, we don't really know anything about it. But, it shouldn't be too bad, right?"

Gred and Forge exchanged wide grins.

"Oh firstie, how cute!" swooned Forge melodramatically,

"It warms my heart Forge, it truly does." Sniffed Gred as he wiped an imaginary tear from his eye,

"You see firsties, the sorting ceremony is serious business."

"Your very lives may well be at stake!"

"You're going to have to fight a werewolf!"

"Wait a minute" said Ron "You told me that I'd have to fight a troll!"

They paused momentarily, but Gred recovered quickly.

"Oh… yes little brother, _you _will because you're a Weasley."

"But your friends here may have to fight a werewolf instead." added Forge,

"It changes depending on the wizard." Concluded Gred with a firm nod,

Harry and Neville exchanged skeptical glances. Although they didn't know what it was exactly, they were pretty sure that it couldn't be that dangerous.

"Anyways-" said the twins together,

"We'll be off-"

"Don't do anything we wouldn't do!"

And just like that they were gone. Out the door and down the hall to who knows where.

"Well…. They're… interesting?" said Neville,

Ron just huffed and steered the conversation back to Quidditich, avoiding the topic of his siblings. But hearing them say their surname, Harry was suddenly aware of who they were. Mum always went on and on about two particularly naughty twins in her class. Now having met them, Harry wasn't surprised that they drove his mum up the wall.

The remainder of the trip was spent discussing the Quidditich prospects of their favorite clubs. But Harry was beginning to overthink the entire idea of the sorting ceremony. Sure, Fred and George were probably joking, but how come no one was willing to tell them. He and Neville had already asked their parents before, and had been given similarly misleading responses. Maybe it really was something dangerous? All he could say for certain at this point was that he had far too many questions than he would like.

Two more prefects, this time from Hufflepuff, came in and told the three boys to get dressed in their robes. Ron and Harry both changed in short order, and sat in anxious anticipation as the train's rhythmic movements began to subside as it slowed down for arrival.

Harry took a glance outside the window at the quiet town of Hogsmeade. It was late, just past 6 in the evening. The moon was still in its ascent towards the sky, but already its pale blue light smothered the sleepy town. The outskirts were made up of small cottages, separated by reasonably large open spaces, farms by the look of it. Then came the conjoined buildings; the system of houses and shops and stores, all feeding of one another. Harry had been here a few times before, mostly with his dad. And each and every one of those times, he had been intrigued, and somewhat intimidated by the maze like quality of the streets. They were open and spacious, but there weren't many alleyways, and that created a tunnel like effect which could be claustrophobic in and of itself.

Once the train pulled to a stop in the station, Harry and his friends disembarked. Outside, they were for a moment lost in the hustle and bustle of students, but a loud booming voice acted as a beacon in the dark.

"First yer's to me! First yer's to me! Over ere'! Leave yer' bags in the train and make yer' way over to me!"

They made their way over to the owner of the voice, and Harry grinned at the sight of a familiar face.

"Hello Hagrid."

The half-giant looked down and split his bearded mouth into a hearty grin.

"Well if it isn't Harry Potter! Welcome to Hogwarts laddie! How's yer dad?"

Harry answered him, doing his best to ignore the whispers and stares which began the moment Hagrid said his full name. Their short conversation came to a close soon enough, as Hagrid took a cursory look around, pretending to count the first years, and then led them off through the station.

The station itself was a modest place. It had a few benches for people to sit, a desk where Harry supposed someone would be stationed to give assistance where needed. By the door leading outside there was a board covered in newspaper clippings. The ones in the center of the board were clearly relatively new and boasted titles that espoused some recent development in Hogsmeade. Towards the edges the clippings got tattered and worn, clearly old news, and it was on one of those old pieces that he saw the moving image of his face.

He looked young, not much younger than he was now, but younger nonetheless. He was standing by his father's side, looking up at him with a smile. He then turned to look off-screen, his eyes almost lighting up with joy as his mother stepped into the image. She knelt down and embraced him before standing up and doing the same to his dad.

It wasn't really anything particularly unique, but for a moment he felt a knot begin to tighten in his stomach. Before he could think too long on it they were past the bulletin board and outside.

Hagrid led them on a reasonably long walk towards where Harry knew the Black Lake was situated. Throughout their walk Hagrid did his level best to keep them entertained. He boasted about Hogwarts' plethora of magical creatures, wonderful teachers, and of course, Albus Dumbledore. This seemed to set off most of the other students as they all suddenly began to swap stories about his great deeds. It seemed that everyone was desperate to let others know that they knew the man personally. One blond boy even went as far as to claim that Dumbledore had attended his birthday celebration this past year.

Eventually they reached the shore of the Black Lake, and all talk of Dumbledore mud-wrestling dragons and dueling sorcerers dissipated as they all saw what they were expected to do.

"I refuse." Said the blond boy from before, "Those vessels, if they can be called such, look barely capable of staying afloat let alone taking a student across the Lake."

Hagrid frowned, "Oh, don't worry, you won't be going by yerself. That'd be dangerous and all. Four to a boat."

The boy blanched, but before he could say anymore a girl with bushy hair spoke up.

"I'm certain they're safe. Dumbledore himself must have sanctioned this, and I suppose they must be magical boats. So I'm sure we'll make it across without harm."

Although he didn't quite know what the word 'sanctioned' meant, Harry got the message, and so it seemed did the rest of the 1st years as they all began to clamber onto the boats.

Once they had all boarded, the boats set off, propelled by nothing but magic. Harry had managed to get onto a boat with only Ron and Neville so he was able to enjoy the quiet ride and take in the view of Hogwarts Castle in the moonlight. It was enchanting to behold. And for a few moments, all he could think of was how great his time at Hogwarts would be.

oOoOo

They reached the other side without any real incidents besides one boy who nearly deafened his fellow passengers when he screamed and insisted that he saw a face in the water. At first Hagrid had begun to explain that there were Merpeople who lived in the lake, but when he saw all of the first years begin to panic he quickly amended that and spun some tale about Hippogriffs and a man named Connor that left them all thoroughly confused and distracted from supposed faces in the water.

Disembarking was as easy as getting on had been, and soon they had made their way up a set of lit stairs that led to a wide double door. It burst open as they approached and a stern looking witch stepped through. She assessed them through he spectacles before softening her expression and speaking in a clear and controlled voice.

"Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry! My name is Professor McGonagall. I teach Transfiguration and lead Gryffindor House here at Hogwarts, and I hope that you will all make for keen students. I'm sure you must all be quite famished after your trip. Your dinner will be served soon but first, you must be sorted. When I lead you inside I expect you to sit along the chairs by the wall in silence. Your name will be read out, and you will then come to the front of the hall where the sorting hat will decide your fate. Wait here for a moment."

She stood there for a while and began to speak with Hagrid, and when it became clear that she wasn't really going anywhere the students began to talk amongst themselves.

"I'm going to kill Fred and George! Fighting a troll my arse!" growled Ron,

"Which house do you think you'll be in?" said Neville,

That got Ron's attention quick.

"Gryffindor obviously! Everyone in my family is a Gryffindor." He said with pride.

"Well, I hope I'm a Hufflepuff like my mum." Neville replied,

Harry was about to respond when a voice cut him off.

"Of course, everyone knows that you aren't likely to get anywhere in life if you aren't a Slytherin."

The blond boy smirked at the three of them as he spoke, before holding out his hand in greeting.

"My name is Draco Malfoy."

Ron looked red and Neville somewhat cautious so Harry took the lead and shook Draco's hand.

"I'm Harry Potter."

"Of course you are. You're Neville Longbottom I presume?"

"Uhh yeah."

"My father said the Potters and the Longbottoms were close, and your families have been allies for generations. Good to see you maintaining your family ties.

"I advise you not to get too close to that one though." He sniffed towards Ron, "Poverty could be contagious you know."

"Sod off Malfoy!"

Ron looked ready to explode, but thankfully Professor McGonagall's voice rang clearly from the front as she beckoned in the students. Following the tide of students, Harry lost track of Neville and Ron.

They walked down the hall for a short while until they reached the large doors that simply screamed Grand Room. They opened autonomously and the first years filed in and sat in the seats at the side of the hall.

The first thing Harry noticed was the sheer size of the room. He knew that Hogwarts had a great deal of students, but seeing them all in one place cemented that into his mind. He wasn't one for guessing, but it looked like there were at least a thousand people sat on the four long tables. At the front of them all were a number of empty spaces, obviously intended for the first years.

The next thing Harry noticed was the numbers of eyes that swiveled in their direction as they walked in. He suddenly felt more self-conscious than he ever before and had to resist the urge to pull his hair down over his scar.

He sat down next Draco and an Irish boy who introduced himself as Seamus. A hush fell over the student body, and Harry followed their eyes to the front of the hall were there the staff tables were.

There were two tables there. One was as long as the hall was wide and only slightly elevated above the students levels. On that table he recognized only Hagrid and of course, his mother. She smiled at him, and from how well he knew her she had to be restraining the urge to wave at him.

On the next level the table was shorter in length, seating only about 12 teachers, but elevated higher than even the first one. On that table he recognized one Severus Snape extremely well. After all, he was her mother's best friend. Unsurprisingly, he pretended to not notice the first years, and was sat with an expression that managed to be both bland and sour at the same time. Harry had to stifle a laugh at the man, it was typical Uncle Sev.

But the person who had drawn all their attention was sat in the middle of that second table. He stood there with all the bearing and severity of a man on a stroll. His robes were an outrageous blue and stars seemed to drift aimlessly across them. His beard fell to his waist, and was adorned with silver ornaments that tinkled slightly in a breeze that was all his own. There stood Albus Percival Wulfric Dumbledore, Savior of the Wizarding World, Vanquisher of Grindelwald, Headmaster of Hogwarts.

He smiled demurely at the students and spoke.

"To our new students, I say welcome! And to our old, welcome back! I look forward to another wonderful year here at Hogwarts, and as we always do we shall begin with the sorting of our newest members."

At this point Harry noticed Professor McGonagall standing in front of the staff tables next to a chair that had an old wizard's hat perched on it. She began to read names from a parchment she held. With every name she read, a student went up and sat on the chair putting the hat on their head. Then, a few seconds later, the hat bellowed the name of the students' house and they would go join them to the sound of applause.

Harry tried to keep track of all the students who were called up but his own anxiousness made that largely impossible. He only managed to notice the few people he knew already.

"Hermione Granger!" the bushy haired girl from earlier strode to the front with a confidence he certainly wasn't feeling. She had to be a Gryffindor. Or maybe a Ravenclaw, she had seemed quite clever by the shore.

"…Ravenclaw!" screamed the hat.

Hermione didn't look the least bit surprised, and made her way to Ravenclaw to the sound of rapturous applause from the Ravenclaws, and polite applause from the other tables.

"Neville Longbottom!" Harry mentally cheered for his friend as he made his way nervously to the front. He was reasonably sure that Neville would be a Hufflepuff like his parents.

"Hufflepuff!" said the hat.

Neville couldn't contain his abashed smile as Hufflepuff greeted him with deafening applause.

"Draco Malfoy!" Draco rose from beside Harry and walked with the kind of stiff and manufactured grace that his dad and Sirius constantly made fun off. With the kind of confidence the boy had displayed earlier, Harry guessed that he'd probably be a Slytherin.

"…Slytherin!" said the hat the moment it touched his head.

Draco didn't even seem fazed by the attention as Slytherin house applauded his sorting.

Eventually Professor McGonagall reached his name on the list and Harry stood with what felt like the weight of the world on his shoulders. He walked as evenly as he could to the front of the hall. He chanced a glance at his mother and uncle at the staff table. His mother looked proud and almost teary as she watched him. Uncle Sev on the other hand still looked as bored as he had before, but this time he looked Harry in the eyes and nodded slightly.

Abruptly Harry felt calmer. He could do this. His nerves settled down in his stomach and he sat down on the stool, allowing Professor McGonagall to place the oversized hat over his head and eyes.

"Well well well. Harry Potter eh?"

Harry started at the sound of the voice in his head.

"Who's there?" he thought

"I'm the sorting hat boy. Don't mind me, just rooting through your every memory, thought and feeling since childhood."

"Are you… meant to do that?"

"Of course!"

"Oh. All right then."

"There, done! You've got some bravery in you boy, real courage. Your father was the same too, a real wildcard. But, you're not foolhardy. No, you've got something about you. A cleverness… Yes, you'll do well there."

"Wait, what? Why? Everyone's expecting me to go to Gryffindor! I don't want to disappoint my dad! Please, don't put me in Ravenclaw!"

"Ravenclaw! Who said anything about Ravenclaw? SLYTHERIN!" said the hat.

For a few seconds the hall was silent and everyone just stared with dropped jaws. Then a Slytherin boy, he looked like a 4th year, stood up and yelled.

"WE GOT POTTER!"

At that the rest the table began cheering and applauding, some of the older students directing decidedly inappropriate gestures towards Gryffindor's table.

Harry made his way to Slytherin's table feeling incredibly uncomfortable. Where the other 1st years had received polite applause from the other tables besides their own house, for him they all simply stared in shock. Even the Slytherins weren't paying him the least attention. All their cheers were directed towards the Gryffindors, particularly in the direction of two very sour looking red haired twins.

Harry sat down in the nearest empty seat, across from Draco who immediately leant over.

"Way to make a statement Potter. Didn't know you had it in you."

Harry nearly said something about how he had requested not to be in Slytherin, but he quickly held that thought back as he remembered his place. After all, he was a Slytherin now.

After that the rest of the sortings passed Harry by in a blur. He barely paid any attention as Ron was sorted into Gryffindor, nor did he listen to Dumbledore's pre-feast speech. All he could think of was how badly his dad was going to take the news. Not once did he look up at the staff table to his mother.

As food began to appear in dishes in front of him, the girl by his side finally spoke to him.

"Try the Casserole. It looks quite delicious."

Woken from his reverie Harry glanced at her, and then back at the food.

"Right. Thanks."

"No problem. My name is Pansy Parkinson. 3rd Generation Slytherin."

"Harry."

"Not talkative? That's alright really. My mother always says that a man who talks too much is probably a degenerate with no regard for decorum."

Harry stifled a groan as the girl continued to speak. On any other day he would have been happy to speak to someone his age, but not today, not now. He still couldn't believe it. He was a Slytherin. Padfoot had never, not _once, _had a good thing to say about Slytherins. Would he no longer want to see him? What about his dad? Or Moony? It all rested on one person actually, his mum. He knew that if she was okay with it then the rest could be convinced. But he still didn't want to look up at the staff table. What if she was upset?

"So Potter, tell us about how you defeated the Dark Lord."

Harry couldn't tell who had asked the question, but instantly all of the nearby Slytherins were paying rapt attention to him. Thankfully, since they were at the front it was mostly just the other first years.

"Um… there isn't much to tell."

"Come on! Don't you remember anything? What'd your parents tell you about it?" said a second year further down the table.

"Leave him alone Huth." Interrupted Draco,

"Can't you see he's hungry? He can tell you all about it some other time."

Harry shot him a grateful smile before focusing on his food, his mind still a flurry of thoughts. Soon enough the meal ended and the food faded from the tables as Dumbledore rose once again.

"Before you depart for the warmth of your beds, I have a few announcements to make. First of all, there are some changes to our faculty. Professor Copeland has unfortunately left us for an opportunity to study in Egypt. She will be sorely missed. Her enthusiasm for and love for baking pies was second to none.. In her stead I welcome two new Professors for History of Magic in Professors Yves and Lucile Durant. Mr Durant will be taking over as Head of History of Magic. I would also like to welcome Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, who I'm sure you all know well enough. He will be joining Professor Quirrell in teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts. This will be Professor Slughorn's final year here at Hogwarts due to his decision to retire. And so, Professor Snape will be transitioning into position as Head of Slytherin and Head of Potions.

"On the 3rd floor we are currently having some renovations done. There will be some very powerful and very dangerous magic involved in this process. It is perfectly safe as long as you stay clear of the 3rd floor. As such, the stairways have been instructed not to take you to the 3rd floor and I strongly advise against you attempting to find other means of going there. There will be severe point deductions for anyone found violating this instruction.

"The Forbidden Forest is open for 5th year students and above, and Mr Filch requested that I remind you that he has a list of forbidden items up by his office, and it has been updated since last year. I leave all other news to your Heads of House. Can all 1st years remain behind, along with the 5th and 6th year prefects. Thank you and good night."

After that the Hall emptied relatively quickly with most teachers and students leaving in quick order. Harry was silently afraid that his mother would come and pull him aside to speak to him, but thankfully she had something to attend to since she left along with the Gryffindor students.

After everyone else had left, the four prefects led them from the Hall and towards the staircases. Of course, there he and his fellow Slytherins were shocked and quite apprehensive of the moving stairways. But the prefects assured them of their safety and Harry remembered the Granger girls' words.

They went down the stairs as far as they would go and exited on the bottom floor. Through the dimly lit halls they went, the first years silently following behind their far more at ease leaders. Eventually they reached a large circular room. It had a high ceiling with a grand chandelier in the center. The room looked like some kind of seating area, large enough to fit a great deal of bodies. The prefects stopped in front of a large mirror and one of them, a girl, turned to speak.

"Alright then. Listen closely. To enter the Slytherin common room you have to come up to this mirror here and when prompted, say the password. Professor Slughorn normally changed the password ever term, but with Snape in charge he might change that so you have to pay attention during House meetings. Okay then, the password is 'A bird without wings'. Say it, then walk into the mirror."

One by one, they all walked forward and when a ghostly specter of Professor Snape appeared in the mirror and said "What is intelligence without ambition?" they repeated the password before stepping into the mirror which swallowed them in like water. When Harry stepped through for a moment he felt cold, and strangely at peace. But just as quickly the feeling left him and he opened his eyes, never realizing he had closed them, to see the Slytherin common room.

It was elegant. The furniture looked slightly aged, but was of the highest quality. Mirrors clung to the walls from nearly every side, and torches on the walls cast a warm glow over the room. The one thing which surprised Harry the most was the blatant lack of snake motifs. Sure there was a mirror framed with snakes on one wall, and an armchair with snakes lining its sides but for the most part there was nothing overtly snake-like about the room. So Padfoot was wrong about _that _at least.

Once everyone was through they all turned to the prefect who requested their attention.

"Okay, now we're going to take you to your rooms. Your trunks will already be there. Make sure you're in here by 8 tomorrow morning so you can receive your orientation. You'll be woken up at 7:30 but it's up to you to clean up and get yourself down here. Alright, girls follow Leanne down that side, boys with me."

The boys followed him down the hall, and he dropped them off, two to a room. Harry ended being paired with Draco and as the door closed behind them they both took in their new home.

It was spacious and well decorated. Their beds were separated by a bookshelf, and their trunks were sat at the foot of their beds. There was a door off to the right, which upon further inspection, Harry discovered led to the bathroom.

With neither a word nor glance in Draco's direction, he got ready for bed and climbed into his blankets, drifting off into a fitful sleep.

* * *

><p><span><strong>SIRIUS<strong>

Sirius and Moody had spent most of the day scouring Inner London in search of the dark creature. Moody had "suggested" that they use a modified scrying spell to search for beings with large magical cores.

The spell had helped them save time as they searched the areas with higher levels of magical saturation. But even then, as the sun set in the sky Sirius was struggling more and more to stay awake. He was in the process of buying his third coffee of the day, as well as "conversing" with the barista, when Moody gave him a not so gentle nudge in the back.

"Found somethin'." With that Moody was gone, pushing the through the crowd of people heading home from work.

Sirius cursed and rushed after him, hastily leaving behind enough notes to cover his coffee, and of course forgetting the coffee itself.

He quickly caught up to Moody and fell in step beside him and cast a subtle silencing charm so they could speak.

"You find it?"

"No, I found tickets to go and watch the Quidditch World Cup- of course I found it! Two streets down over there."

"Guessing you used that eye of yours."

"Stupid question."

"Hn. Any chance I could buy it off you?"

"Better men have tried Black."

Sirius shrugged but made a mental note to look into getting one of those.

They walked for a further five minutes, going across the two streets Moody had pointed out. Moody eventually turned onto a smaller street. The traffic was decidedly thinner here.

Convenience stores lined the sides of the street, along with a laundry store, restaurant, and a hair salon.

They stopped opposite a motel that had a glowing neon sign hung above it that read, _Byzantium._

"Nice place." Sirius muttered. "So, is our illustrious dark fiend inside?"

Moody grunted and Sirius took that to mean yes.

"Take your time then Moody. It's not like I've been awake for over 24 hours or anything."

Sirius amused himself for a moment by checking out the prices for some of the food at the restaurant. He was seriously considering buying one of the curries to take home with him when Moody swore under his breath.

"What? What's wrong?" Sirius asked.

"Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks. You're leaving Black. Get to the Ministry and find Longbottom _now_."

"What! Why? What the hell's going on Moody?"

"Vampires, Black. A whole bloody coven of em' are sitting in that apartment."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>Thanks for reading. Please read and review, your feedback helps me grow. Next chapter should come out some time this month... hopefully.


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